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Recent Player News
Date	Player	News
8/7/2008	Chase Utley, 2B (Phi)	Utley went 1-for-3 with a walk in the host Phillies' 3-0 loss to Florida on Thursday. Analysis: Utley's club may have been saddled with a defeat, but the second baseman was able to extend his hitting streak to 12 games in which he has gone 15-for-44 (.341) with three homers and eight RBIs. He has also scored nine times in that stretch. Utley is batting .292 with 28 homers and 78 RBIs this season.
8/7/2008	Jeff Karstens, SP (Pit)	Karstens set down his first 23 batters before Chris Young's two-out double in the eighth inning and finished with a two-hitter Wednesday in a 2-0 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks. Analysis: Karstens has tossed 15 scoreless innings - against a pair of first-place teams - in two games since coming to Pittsburgh in a six-player trade July 26 that sent outfielder Xavier Nady and reliever Damaso Marte to the New York Yankees. This masterpiece followed a 3-0 victory Friday over the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. The 25-year-old Karstens outpitched Randy Johnson, who tossed baseball's most recent perfect game in May 2004.
8/7/2008	Sean Gallagher, SP (Oak)	Gallagher will not need to go on the disabled list, but will miss his next start due to irritation in his right shoulder, according to the Athletics' official Web site. Left-hander Dan Meyer, who was called up from Triple-A Sacramento this past weekend, will start in place of Gallagher against the Tigers on Saturday. Analysis: Gallagher flew back to California this week and met with team doctors to have an MRI performed on his shoulder. A's manager Bob Geren said the test showed that Gallagher's injury is minor. "He wanted to get it checked out just to clear it in his own mind and make sure it wasn't anything serious," Geren said. Gallagher, acquired from the Chicago Cubs last month, is 1-1 with a 4.26 ERA in five starts with the A's.
8/7/2008	Takashi Saito, RP (LAD)	Saito played catch in Los Angeles on Thursday for the first time since going on the disabled list with a sprained elbow ligament on July 18. Analysis: Saito was diagnosed with a sprained ligament in his pitching elbow in mid-July by a team doctor, who recommended six weeks of rehabilitation before the 38-year-old right-hander is reevaluated. Saito went 3-3 with a 2.18 ERA, converting 17 saves in 39 games this season before he was hurt.
8/7/2008	Rick Ankiel, CF (StL)	Ankiel missed his 11th straight start with an abdominal strain on Thursday, when the host Cardinals lost 4-1 to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Ankiel, though, could return on Friday. Analysis: Ankiel struck out in his only at-bat in Thursday's defeat. The converted outfielder, batting .281 with 22 homers and 59 RBIs this season, has been limited to four pinch-hit appearances since he was injured.
8/7/2008	Adam Wainwright, SP (StL)	Wainwright will make his first rehab start from a finger injury on Friday for Triple-A Memphis, and could come back as the closer. Analysis: Wainwright's first outing was moved up one day and the team plans on shorter and more frequent appearances until he's ready. The right-hander, who hasn't pitched since June 7 due to a sprained finger, went 6-3 with a 3.14 ERA in 13 starts for the Cardinals before he was hurt.
8/7/2008	Randy Winn, RF (SF)	Winn added four hits including the 1,500th of his career and scored twice for the host Giants in their 3-2 win over Atlanta on Wednesday. Analysis: Winn has notched 1,503 hits over his 11-season career. He is batting .291 with five homers and 43 RBIs this season, but has gone 19-for-44 (.432) with a double and four RBIs over his last 11 games, collecting at least a hit in all but one of those contests. He has scored seven times in that stretch.
8/7/2008	Jim Thome, DH (CWS)	Thome hit a three-run homer, helping the Chicago White Sox to a 5-1 victory over Detroit on Wednesday night. Analysis: Thome is batting .257 with 22 homers and 65 RBIs overall, but has been heating up lately. The designated hitter has gone 8-for-25 (.320) with three homers, two doubles and six RBIs over his last six games. He has scored seven runs in that stretch.
8/7/2008	Brandon Morrow, RP (Sea)	Morrow, the fifth overall draft choice in 2006 sent from Seattle's bullpen to Triple-A Tuesday to become a starter, threw 1 2-3 scoreless innings in his first start for Tacoma. Analysis: Morrow allowed one hit and struck out one while adhering to a pitch limit of 35. The Mariners hope to have Morrow, who had 10 saves this summer while J.J. Putz was hurt, in their rotation before the season ends. Morrow is 1-2 with a 1.47 ERA and 10 saves in 40 relief appearances this season.
8/7/2008	Michael Cuddyer, RF (Min)	Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said Cuddyer will remain on rehabilitation assignment at Rochester through the weekend. Analysis: Cuddyer, out with a strained tendon in left index finger since June 28, was to have six at-bats in a doubleheader Wednesday. His first rehab game was rained out Tuesday. "I know he said he'd be ready" by the weekend, Gardenhire said. "But just because his hand feels good doesn't mean he's ready to hit ... I don't need a body. I need an offensive player." Cuddyer was hitting .252 with three homers and 35 RBIs before he was injured.
8/7/2008	Alfonso Soriano, LF (ChC)	Soriano launched a three-run homer after Mark DeRosa hit a grand slam during an eight-run burst in the third inning, and the Chicago Cubs beat the Houston Astros 11-4 Wednesday. Analysis: Soriano has hit .348 (23-for-66) with six homers, five doubles and 15 RBIs in 15 games since returning from a broken finger. "It is a little surprising," said Soriano, who is hitting .299 with 21 homers and 55 RBIs in 66 games overall this season.
8/7/2008	Aaron Rowand, CF (SF)	Rowand homered and drove in a season high-tying three runs for the host Giants in their 3-2 win over Atlanta on Wednesday. Analysis: This was Rowand's third three-RBI performance of the season, and his first since May 25. The center fielder has gone 4-for-10 with a homer and five RBIs over his last three games, and is hitting .282 with 10 homers and 60 RBIs this season.
8/7/2008	Raul Ibanez, LF (Sea)	Ibanez went 2-for-4, but his multi-hit performance wasn't enough in the host Mariners' 7-3 loss to Minnesota on Wednesday. Analysis: Ibanez has been on a tear through the first six games of August, going 11-for-24 (.458) with two homers and 15 RBIs during that stretch. Overall, he is batting .290 with 17 homers and 78 RBIs this season.
8/7/2008	Carlos Pena, 1B (TB)	Pena's three-run homer capped a six-run rally in the ninth inning that carried the Rays past the Cleveland Indians 10-7 Wednesday for one of their most thrilling victories in a wondrous season. Analysis: Pena is batting .239 with 20 homers and 62 RBIs this season, and he has gone 6-for-22 (.273) with three homers and eight RBIs, as well as five runs scored, over his last seven contests.
8/7/2008	Nick Markakis, RF (Bal)	Markakis homered and drove in three runs, but the visiting Orioles lost 9-4 to the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday. Analysis: Markakis is batting .299 with 16 homers and 64 RBIs this season, and has been especially hot at the plate lately. The outfielder has gone 17-for-48 (.354) with a homer, four doubles and 10 RBIs over his last 12 contests, collecting at least a hit in all but one of those games. He has also scored nine times in that span.
8/7/2008	Carlos Lee, LF (Hou)	Lee homered and drove in three runs, but the Astros couldn't hold on to their early lead as they lost 11-4 to the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday. Analysis: Lee's homer staked the Astros to a 4-1 lead in the third, but the Cubs responded with an eight-run performance in the bottom half of that inning. He has gone 8-for-22 (.364) with three homers and eight RBIs over his last eight games, and is batting .304 with 27 homers and 95 RBIs this season. With his performance Wednesday, Lee has now totaled 27 homers and 76 RBIs in 90 career games versus the Cubs.
8/7/2008	Jacoby Ellsbury, CF (Bos)	Ellsbury was 3-for-4 with a homer and three RBIs, helping the visiting Red Sox to an 8-2 win over Kansas City on Wednesday. Analysis: Ellsbury has gone 6-for-17 (.353) through the Red Sox's first six games in August, scoring three runs for them in that stretch. Overall, he is batting .266 with six homers and 32 RBIs this season.
8/7/2008	Jay Bruce, CF (Cin)	Bruce homered and drove in three runs, but the host Reds lost 6-3 to Milwaukee on Wednesday. Analysis: Bruce is batting .276 with 11 homers and 32 RBIs in 63 games, but the rookie outfielder has been hot lately. He has gone 13-for-36 (.361) with four homers and eight RBIs during a 10-game hitting streak. He has also scored seven times in that span.
8/7/2008	Rod Barajas, C (Tor)	Barajas hit a three-run homer, and the host Blue Jays beat Oakland 5-1 Wednesday night to extend the Athletics' season-long losing streak to nine games. Analysis: Barajas, who is batting .260 with nine homers and 37 RBIs this season, has gone 9-for-26 (.346) with a homer and six RBIs during a seven-game hitting streak. He also has three doubles, and has scored seven runs in that stretch.
8/7/2008	Denard Span, RF (Min)	Span drove in a career-high four runs - and robbed the Mariners of a go-ahead homer in the seventh inning - to lead the Twins to a 7-3 victory in Seattle on Wednesday. Analysis: The Twins promoted Span for the second time this season on June 30, when Michael Cuddyer went down with a finger injury. Though Cuddyer is set to return next week, Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said he doesn't expect Span to go anywhere. "He'll bat No. 1, and he'll play every day. I can tell you that," Gardenhire said. Span has hit .330 with two homers and 14 RBIs in 32 games since his most recent call-up.
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